August 1977
West Berlin
Germany's TOTP
West Germany’s equivalent of Top of the Pops in 1977 was Disco, broadcast on ZDF and hosted by Ilja Richter. Disco was filmed primarily at ZDF’s television studios in West Berlin during the 1970s, including 1977, using a dedicated studio audience and set rather than touring venues.
It featured chart acts performing (often miming), occasional live elements, and ran from 1971 to 1982, making it the closest German counterpart to the BBC’s TOTP in that period.
Record Mirror 20 August 1977
Juicy Lucy: West Germany's TOTP
As if it wasn’t bad enough having Top Of The Pops here, the Germans have their equivalent show. They booked The Clash to appear with some go-go dancers (silly move anyway) in the same show as Tina Charles and Paul Nicholas.
The band didn’t see that it was such a great virtue being able to mime anyway and were peeved because they weren’t allowed in the dining room. Joe Strummer got his own back by drawing pictures of Hitler on the beer mats and the loo door. It quite cheered him up.
